MILAN..I’LL DRINK TO THAT
SALLY McLEAN Whether you’re going to experience the fine dining, wine tasting, haute couture or the history, Milan will deliver everything you need for an unforgettable trip
ANGLING the glass under my nose, I sniffed its velvety contents before taking a sip and penning a score on the card in front of me.
“Thoughts?” asked my Italian host Giuseppe Rizzardi.
“This is definitely my favourite,” I grinned then proceeded to down the rest of the glass with gusto.
I was at a wine-tasting session at the Guerrieri Rizzardi vineyard – a two-hour drive east from cosmopolitan Milan.
The historic wine house in the Veneto region is the result of a union of two ancient wine producers – the Guerrieri family, owners of a centuries-old estate with vineyards and cellars in Bardolino, and the Rizzardis, who acquired their vineyards in Negrar back in 1649.
In 1913, the two families came together through marriage and Guerrieri Rizzardi was born, with the winemakers producing their first label a year later.
In a picturesque setting near Lake Garda, the vineyards and huge winery are breathtakingly impressive.
Sitting back in the grand medieval-style tasting room, I felt rather regal as I drank in the rich history, then Giuseppe suddenly announced he’d had the honour of hosting a very famous British royal – Princess Diana.
‘’She came here to sample the wines,” he said proudly, showing me a framed photograph of Diana, adding with a smile, “She was very fun to be around”.
Tasting session over, we were taken on a tour of the vineyard’s stunning Pojega gardens, famous in the region for their green amphitheatre and spectacular perspectives that feature a temple, theatre, galleries and belvedere.
Of course, more wine was on the agenda when we arrived at charming La Loggia Rambaldi for a prosecco lunch.
A starter of tuna and sourdough was followed by mushroom risotto for the main course and rounded off with a selection of Italian cheeses.
It refuelled us for the two-hour journey back to Milan.
The Ramada Plaza Milano, our base for the trip, is a five-minute walk from the Linea Rossa Turro underground station.
After a quick refresh, it was easy to hop on to the Metro and ride eight stops to the Duomo.
The magnificent cathedral (duomomilano.it) – which took a staggering six centuries to complete – is the third largest church in the world. A stone’s throw away is Italy’s oldest and most beautiful shopping mall, the vaulted Galleria Vittorio Emanuele.
It was built in 1867 and designed by architect Giuseppe Mengoni.
Milan is the country’s fashion capital and in the Quadrilatero d’Oro, I whiled away a few hours strictly window-shopping at the high-end designer stores such as Gucci, Versace and Armani which line the famous “Golden Triangle”.
Back at the hotel, there was
more wine-tasting in store at a dinner in The Brasserie, hosted by Jamie Goode. The British wine expert has teamed up with Ramada hotels to curate a different red wine list for 15 of their hotels.
Jamie showed just how much of a connoisseur of wine he is, teaching us which wines complement certain dishes.
Among the six on offer – which included Pinot Noir, Barbera and Valpolicella – one stood out.
It was the Guerrieri Rizzardi Bardolino Classico 2017, which I had sampled that very morning at the winery. After an action-packed day, I had no problem falling asleep in my comfy bed. But a hearty breakfast of bacon, pastries and espresso set us up nicely for some more sightseeing.
Our tour began at the Teatro alla Scala, a beautiful opera house built in 1778.
We then admired The Last Supper, the mural painted by Leonardo da Vinci housed in the Santa Maria delle Grazie church.
Gazing at one of the world’s most famous works of art, thoughts inevitably turned to food and drink, so we made our way to the pretty ivy-clad pizzeria Volemose Bene, in the heart of the city. A platter of olives, fried artichoke and mozzarella with a glass of zinfandel kicked things off.
And the main dish of chicken and penne pasta, drizzled in a white wine sauce, left me feeling too stuffed for dessert.
But I was up for a show at the Blue Note Milano, the legendary jazz club of New York fame.
We enjoyed a cocktail or two at the bar before a band of seven – armed with trumpets, trombones and guitars – took to the stage for a stomping late-night performance. Somehow, I managed to wake up in time to catch my flight home, but sadly without picking up a bottle of wine as a souvenir.
A visit to the wine section of the local supermarket soon fixed that, since I was keen to discover if my palate had become more cultured since my educational trip.
My choice of an oaky Montepulciano was all the proof I needed that it most certainly had.
Though the speed at which I gulped it down meant I still had a long way to go before I could call myself a connoisseur.